Faithless Except in Her
by Roony
Summary: Simon and Mal clash when Simon discovers Mal's relationship with River. MalRiver, sort of.


title: Faithless Except in Her

author: Roony

rating: T (for implied sexual situations)

disclaimer: I do not own Firefly or Serenity or any characters.

a/n: I'm not a fan of Mal/River, I just like to experiment with it.

summary: Simon and Mal clash when Simon discovers Mal and River's relationship.

* * *

"I love her." 

This was met with a quick and hard punch across the face, the good doctor proving once again that he could take care of himself-provided he had the element of surprise and his opponent wasn't willing to strike back right away. Fortunately for Simon, Mal was such an opponent today. The captain of the Serenity was in rare form in this, but something told him that hitting Simon back and then asking again for his blessing to take River's hand in marriage just wasn't quite going to work.

So, Mal just took it-he'd half expected it anyhow, and swallowed the blood welling up from his mouth.

"Hwan dun," Simon cursed snidely.

So he _did_ curse in Chin talk. Great. Now Mal has some bets to relieve himself of to Kaylee and Zoe, and Jayne will too. Not that bets are the central thing on his mind now. At least, not for the most part.

"It's the truth," Mal said evenly, straightening himself, "I love her."

Punch across the face again. Mal gave a smirk that didn't follow to his eyes. "You keep that up, we ain't goin' to get anywheres in this."

"It isn't true," Simon said in a near growl, "You're a liar."

"I am no such thing," Mal stated, adding, "Least, not right now. Now I came down here as a matter of honor and _courtesy_-"

"'Courtesy'?" the doctor quoted with indignant incredulity, "'Honor'? You call sneaking around, taking the most evil kind of advantage of my brain damaged sister, not even bothering to be discreet enough for me not to _catch_ you in it, then having the _audacity_ to come into my room and be so obscene as to ask for my _blessing_ to marry her is a 'courtesy'?"

"Hang on a moment," Mal said, feeling his stomach feel all sunk as he realized Simon was more than in the right on this one, "You keep usin' so many gorram big words I ain't gonna be half able to keep up with you cuttin' me to pieces with your mouth."

Mal thought Simon was going to hit him again, but this time Simon just shoved him back a bit. Somehow, Mal was more irritated about this than the decking.

"How long?" Simon gritted out.

Mal blinked, a little confused. "How…?"

"You know what I mean and I'm not asking again," Simon stated, is rage and disgust coating his words, "I just need to know."  
Mal paused, knowing now what Simon meant. "What's it matter?"

"Because it does, and you know it does," Simon replied, "Did it start when we first got on? She was naked when you first saw her, after all." Mal was already scoffing at the boy-who was more a man than Mal was ready to give off the cuff credit for. "All those half glances, side remarks? Just by chance or were you already thinking of how to trick the poor schizophrenic girl into getting under you?"

"Hey!" Now Mal was angry. He could deal with Simon's anger just fine, but when he started throwing around accusations like _that…_ "Now don't you be goin' about thinking that my intentions toward your sister were ever physical until recently. I don't take too kindly to such accusations, especially by a person whom I suppose to know me better than that."

"I thought I knew you too, Mal," Simon said coldly, "I thought I did."

There was a pause again, and Mal was getting right quick tired of these awkward silences. There had been a few too many in recent days.

Then Mal went and said something stupid. "Look, anyways, you took Kaylee from me first you know."

Simon bristled at the mention of his wife, but he seemed for dumbfounded. "Excuse me?"

Mal shrugged, as if the remarks he was making weren't anything. "You went and married Kaylee-"

"That is _nothing_ like this!" Simon replied, as though Mal were a simpleton only half worth his time.

"I see it otherwise," Mal said, "I cared for Kaylee like she was the sister I ain't never had and you-"

"Don't you dare compare a mutual relationship between two consenting adults to the disgraceful debauchery you engaged in with River!"

"She is a consenting adult!" Mal shouted back, now more defending River than himself, "I'd never take advantage of her if'n she wasn't!"

Simon gave a cruel laugh. "Oh, sure you wouldn't, Mal."

This time it was Mal the punched Simon, and this time the hitter looked generally sorry immediately after, even if it were perhaps on account of him seeing any chance of permission being granted flying out the port, so to speak.

"Er, sorry," Mal said awkwardly as Simon recovered and glared at him.

Simon walked right up to Mal and looked him dead in the eye. His voice was the strongest, fiercest, and coldest Mal had ever known it to be. "You don't come anywhere near River again."

He pushed past the captain and moved to the ladder, apparently thinking the conversation was over. But it wasn't for Mal; blessing, permission, whatever regardless, he wanted to clear his name with Simon.

"She's more than you give her a chance of being," Mal said.

Simon didn't turn back around, but he stopped. "You don't know anything," he said quietly, sounding almost _sorry_ for Mal's supposed ignorance.

"And you are being thicker than a gorram bible when it comes to your sister being a capable human being," Mal stated.

Simon turned and looked at the other man, and again there was this expression of pity on his features, mixing oddly with the deep anger. "You don't understand what you're talking about. You don't understand the sickness of River's mind-"

"You need to _listen_ to her," mal tried, but Simon was continuing on, not even pausing to give Mal a chance.

"-And how it isn't the _same_ as being able to tell when Reavers are coming, or how Serenity works, or quantum physics theories, or whatever Tai-Chi-Southern Praying Mantis Kung Fu she can use to beat Alliance soldiers." Simon sighed and closed his eyes a moment. "She is only re-learning how to _act_ like the rest of us. That doesn't mean that's how she actually _is_."

"I don't believe that." Mal said it with firm truth.

No, the doctor was _wrong_. He had to be. He, Mal, _he_ knew River. She was better than she'd ever been, not the same mind-sick girl she'd been when she'd first been smuggled on board. She'd shared her thoughts with him and they hadn't sounded at all crazy; all quite sane and pretty and smart. Like her. And as she spoke with him and they had conversations and Mal came to actually think about her, he came to love her. It had been _after_ all that it had started to involved touch, and anyway _she_ had been the one to _start_ it by kissing him that first time when they were all alone.

She had to be 'normal', had to be 'well', because if she wasn't… If Simon was right and it was all just a game she'd had, then… Then Mal's soul was really as good as forfeit and he was a fool as great as the gorram universe.

And so Malcolm Reynolds, self prcolaimed faithless, banked his soul on a girl he thought, prayed to all deities, he loved. And to _ensure_ this

But it wasn't true. He wouldn't believe it.

Simon gave a sad smile. "No. I didn't think you would."

* * *

end. 

first Firefly fic I've ever done. I kinda like it.


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